Iran knew war was coming since March, former IRGC commander says

US President Donald Trump is seriously considering American military involvement in the conflict with Iran, but has set three conditions for approving any strike, Axios reported, citing US officials.

According to the report, Trump seeks assurance that any strike is truly necessary, would avoid triggering a prolonged Middle East war, and would decisively dismantle Iran’s nuclear program.

The Israeli military’s spokesman said the air force struck the headquarters of the Special Forces unit of Iran’s Internal Security Forces in Tehran, as part of ongoing attacks on the Islamic Republic’s military infrastructure.

“The Internal Security Forces are one of the regime’s key military bodies,” Effie Defrin said during a press briefing on Thursday.

A group of people is allegedly attempting to mobilize a number of religious scholars in the holy city of Qom to call for what Iran’s Tasnim news agency described as “a form of surrender and compromise” with Israel.

Tasnim, affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, reported that the individuals, described as having “questionable backgrounds,” are seeking to act in tandem with Israel’s attacks on Iran.

According to the report, the group fears a strong government backlash and is considering positioning a former official as the public face of their initiative.

“They fear a strong response from the establishment and are therefore seeking to position a former official as the figurehead of this treacherous move — although that official has not yet responded to their approach.”

Tasnim did not name any officials.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed a scheduled meeting tomorrow between European diplomats and Iran as a positive step amid ongoing tensions, a spokesman said on Thursday.

The foreign ministers of Britain, France, and Germany will meet in Geneva with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric emphasized that “diplomacy is the only and best way forward” to end the Israel-Iran conflict, urging all parties to “stop the military action and avoid at any cost the further internationalization of this conflict.”

The Czech foreign ministry said on Thursday it was temporarily closing its embassy in Tehran for security reasons.